


Game Night

by servantofclio



Category: Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (TV 2012), Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles - All Media Types
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-12-18
Updated: 2015-12-18
Packaged: 2018-05-07 11:05:38
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,130
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5454356
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/servantofclio/pseuds/servantofclio
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>The turtles, age 11, discover the board game Risk.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Game Night

The box was tattered and the board had split into pieces. The cards were worn around the edges, but they were all there. Some of the pieces were missing, but from the boxes of pink and black, so that was okay. Leo and Raph had claimed the blue and red pieces right away, of course, and Mikey had demanded the yellow ones, leaving Donnie with the green ones. Neither of them felt quite right about that, but it was only a game, after all.

Leo was the one who had spotted it in the junk heap, wandering around bored while Donnie poked through the electronics and appliance parts—a rare family trip, all of them out together, the eleven-year-olds under Splinter’s cautious supervision. He’d hauled the long cardboard box out of the pile he’d found it in and carried it back, triumphant. “Look, sensei! It’s called Risk! It says it’s a strategy game! Of global conquest! Can we bring it home? We could learn something!”

Splinter had his doubts about the level of strategy likely to be found in the shabby box Leonardo was holding, but it was likely harmless enough, and easy to carry. Something that could keep the four active boys occupied for a few hours was always welcome. “You may,” he said, warmed by Leonardo’s beaming smile. Leonardo had carried it home himself, the contents of the box rattling quietly as they went, chattering in a whisper about how exciting it would be.

The reality was rather different.

 

“Donnie,” Leo groaned. “Hurry up, you’re taking forever.”

Donnie had been staring at the board for at least five minutes, unblinking and entirely still, a credit to his training. “I’m thinking.”

“Doesn’t usually take you that long,” Raph said. “Come on and _do_ something.”

“I’m not attacking,” Donnie finally decided, depositing his extra armies for the turn at the chokepoints to his stronghold: South America.

“What!” Raph groaned and rolled backwards onto his shell. “It took you that long to decide to do _nothing_?”

“I’m playing defensively!”

“You don’t get a new card that way,” Leo pointed out.

“I _know_ that.” Donnie sat back, putting his faded cards in a neat stack in front of himself. “I read the rules, too, Leo. I’m done.”

Raph rolled back up to a sitting position. “Finally!”

“Mikey,” Leo said. “It’s your turn. Mikey?”

There was no response. Leo sighed. “Mikey? Come on, Mikey.”

Raph reached out and shoved Michelangelo off the pile of cushions he’d made for himself to sit on. He rolled off and sat up, blinking round eyes at them. “Whaa?”

“Did you actually fall asleep?” Raph demanded in disgust.

“No! Totally not.” Mikey rubbed his eyes, convincing none of them. “What’s going on?”

“It’s your turn,” Donnie told him.

“Oh, right! My turn. Uh, what am I supposed to do?”

Leo rolled his eyes. He’d lost count of how many times he’d had to explain. “You get new armies from the territories you control, and then you get to attack someone.”

“Here,” Donnie added, counting out the pieces for him.

Mikey rattled them in his hand, looking over the board, then grinned and started placing them at the border between his territory and Leo’s.

Leo groaned. “Again? C’mon, Mikey, why me?”

“Cause I want to.”

“Really? You’re going to go after me when all of Raph’s stuff is right there?”

“You’re ahead,” Raph said. “It’s a fair move.”

“We’re neck and neck and you know it! And Donnie’s over there with all of South America, he’s had it for three turns now!”

“But he’s not _doing_ anything with it,” Raph said, as Mikey stuck his tongue out and rolled the dice, face screwed up in concentration. Leo picked up the other set of dice and rolled as well, hoping hard, but Mikey was the one who crowed in victory when the dice hit the table.

“Oh yeah! Look at that! Your dudes are totally dead, Leo.”

Leo sat back with a sigh, removing the defeated units. “I know.”

“My turn,” Raph declared the moment Mikey was done. “And look what I got.” He tossed a trio of cards onto the board, smirking.

Donnie leaned forward to look at them. “Nice. That’s worth eight extra armies.”

“That’s right. And what do you think I’m going to do with them?” Raph grabbed his pieces and shot Leo a smirk.

“Oh, come _on_ , Raph, Mikey just attacked me!”

“I know,” Raph said, putting the pieces on the board. “Softened you up real good. Thanks, Mikey.”

“You realize he’s going to win now,” Leo said to Mikey.

Mikey looked sheepish, but shrugged, wiggling his toes.

“The game’s not over yet,” Donnie said, as Raph picked up the dice and started rattling them in his hands.

“Why even bother playing, if you’re all just going to keep attacking me and attacking me?”

“Quit whining and roll your dice, Leo.” Raph glared at him across the board. Leo glared back, gloomily picking up the dice that had failed him last time.

He blinked when the dice came up, though: Leo’s numbers were both higher. “Huh,” said Raph. “Well, that’s okay, I’ve got plenty more armies where that came from.”

But he kept rolling low, and Leo kept rolling high, and somehow the entire mass of red pieces managed to die on the borders of Leo’s fortress. They all stared as the last set of dice gave the same results.

“Well, that was statistically improbable,” Donnie said.

“This game is _stupid_ ,” Raph growled. “This is the worst game _ever_.”

“Just because you have terrible luck—” Leo said, grinning.

Raph snarled and slammed a fist in the middle of the board, sending a shower of colored pieces everywhere. “This is dumb, and I’m done,” he announced, kicking the battered board over and stomping off.

Mikey was up and after him in a flash. “Raph! Wait up!”

“Raph! Mikey! Come on, at least help us pick up!” Leo called after them, but both his brothers kept going without listening. He turned to Donnie hopefully. “You’ll help pick up, right?”

“Sure,” he said, and sighed mournfully. “I was just about to make my move, too.”

Leo frowned. “What do you mean?”

“I had a set of cards,” Donnie said, turning his over and starting to pick up the other stacks of cards. “I thought Raph probably had one, and I was waiting so I could get more armies that way.”

“Huh.” Leo started scooping up their colored army pieces. “What were you going to do with them?”

Donnie gave him just the slightest smirk, and Leo groaned. “Not you, too.” Next time, he thought darkly, they needed to find a different kind of game. Maybe one they could play in pairs. Anything where they couldn’t gang up on him.


End file.
